mdhokie
Member
Hi, this will be my second full season on the track with N2. Last year, I used my street Yamaha FZ1; it was reasonably fast and I think a great bike to learn on. I picked up a 2010 R1 over the winter and plan on using it this season. I wanted an R6, but I got a good deal on a race-ready track bike that I couldn't pass up. Since it's not road-legal, I haven't had any opportunity to test it out on the road and get a feel for the bike at speed before taking it to the track (planning on doing my first track day at NJMP 4/30). I was hoping to get some tips on how to learn to use the bike's potential without the high-side learning experiences. I have attended YCRS and learned a lot of good general techniques that should work on all bikes (they make a big point of this), but it's still definitely a different ride than what I'm used to and some of the techniques are applied differently.
Concerns:
1) Throttle: YCRS teaches utmost smoothness on throttle and braking, and maintenance throttle through turn between braking and acceleration. On my FZ1, I could find maintenance throttle pretty easily. The R1 has a fairly aggressive on/off throttle response: in my perception, 3% does nothing, 4% makes the engine stutter a little without actually doing anything, and 5% causes it to take out the chain slack all at once, shift the weight backwards, and lunge forwards. Fine in a straight line, but not the feel I want at max lean angle. Is this something that can be tuned out (it has a PC-V fuel controller), or is this something you just have to get used to and adapt? Like, skip maintenance throttle, and only roll on the gas when reducing lean angle and completely ready to accelerate out of the corner? Or maybe I just need to be braver and be okay with a little unsettling motion mid-turn? Or, "try harder, you're just not being smooth enough"?
2) Engine braking is also twice as intense as the other bike; I'm a little concerned that less-than-perfect downshifts are going to send my rear wheel sliding. I know there are hardware aids like ECU tuning, auto-blipper, and slipper clutch. I also know I should be blipping throttle and rev matching while downshifting, but in practice I just feather the clutch instead because I haven't been able to get the hang of blipping without affecting my braking modulation. Or, should I just learn not to care if the rear tire is squirming around during braking? I've had it happen before and it didn't seem to affect my line so long as I kept stable and smooth on the front brake.
3) Body position: I know you're supposed to try to keep your hands light on the steering bars to allow more precise control with less input force, and avoid locked elbows sending suspension feedback into steering. That was easy to do with upright position on FZ1, but with my butt and feet so much higher and rearward (bike has aggressive rearsets), my weight is naturally falling forward. I was also told to try sitting far back on the seat, which only amplifies the effect. I tried practicing sitting on the bike on stands. The only way I could "hands free" hold myself up is by squeezing the tank tightly with both legs; as soon as I start to lean to the side and let go with my inside leg, I'll fall over and end up laying on the tank. Perhaps it will be different at speed, when I'm leaning against the centripetal force (or inertia on my original trajectory if you want to be pedantic)?
Perhaps I already know what I need to do, and it's just a matter of practice, but if anybody has specific tips, I'm all ears.
Concerns:
1) Throttle: YCRS teaches utmost smoothness on throttle and braking, and maintenance throttle through turn between braking and acceleration. On my FZ1, I could find maintenance throttle pretty easily. The R1 has a fairly aggressive on/off throttle response: in my perception, 3% does nothing, 4% makes the engine stutter a little without actually doing anything, and 5% causes it to take out the chain slack all at once, shift the weight backwards, and lunge forwards. Fine in a straight line, but not the feel I want at max lean angle. Is this something that can be tuned out (it has a PC-V fuel controller), or is this something you just have to get used to and adapt? Like, skip maintenance throttle, and only roll on the gas when reducing lean angle and completely ready to accelerate out of the corner? Or maybe I just need to be braver and be okay with a little unsettling motion mid-turn? Or, "try harder, you're just not being smooth enough"?
2) Engine braking is also twice as intense as the other bike; I'm a little concerned that less-than-perfect downshifts are going to send my rear wheel sliding. I know there are hardware aids like ECU tuning, auto-blipper, and slipper clutch. I also know I should be blipping throttle and rev matching while downshifting, but in practice I just feather the clutch instead because I haven't been able to get the hang of blipping without affecting my braking modulation. Or, should I just learn not to care if the rear tire is squirming around during braking? I've had it happen before and it didn't seem to affect my line so long as I kept stable and smooth on the front brake.
3) Body position: I know you're supposed to try to keep your hands light on the steering bars to allow more precise control with less input force, and avoid locked elbows sending suspension feedback into steering. That was easy to do with upright position on FZ1, but with my butt and feet so much higher and rearward (bike has aggressive rearsets), my weight is naturally falling forward. I was also told to try sitting far back on the seat, which only amplifies the effect. I tried practicing sitting on the bike on stands. The only way I could "hands free" hold myself up is by squeezing the tank tightly with both legs; as soon as I start to lean to the side and let go with my inside leg, I'll fall over and end up laying on the tank. Perhaps it will be different at speed, when I'm leaning against the centripetal force (or inertia on my original trajectory if you want to be pedantic)?
Perhaps I already know what I need to do, and it's just a matter of practice, but if anybody has specific tips, I'm all ears.